“I can’t wait to go home and have tadgola ice cream,” Twinkle Khanna laughs. I am quick to ask, “From where?”, my face is already lighting up at the thought. Because really, what could be more quintessentially Mumbai than a scoop, or several, of tadgola (ice apple) ice cream on a humid afternoon, watching the sky change colours as the city slips deeper into peak monsoon? Finishing shoots, taking off all her makeup, going home and eating ice cream, is her idea of indulgence.
Having followed Khanna’s journey for a while now, I have often found myself wondering how she manages to do so much. From where I stand, and perhaps for many who follow her journey, it seems like she is constantly reinventing herself.
“I think reinvention is very important, especially if you don't believe in reincarnation, and I don't. I have this one life, and I want to live multiple lives within it,” she says, adding, “I also believe that if you don't keep upskilling and don’t remain curious about what's changing around you, you become obsolete. You don't want to be a BlackBerry in the world of iPhones. That's why I try to learn something new every day.”
Khanna inhabits many worlds in a single day, I ask which of her identities feels most like home.
Sitting across from me in false lashes, and a look that is more glamorous than her everyday self, she laughs. “This doesn’t,” Khanna says, and adds, “What feels like me is sitting at my desk in my pyjamas, wearing my glasses and writing. This is just fun. It's like playing dress-up as a child when you'd borrow clothes from your mother's wardrobe.”
Every time she answers one of my questions, I find myself secretly wishing the crew would disappear, just for a little while, so I could keep picking her brain. There is something about the way her mind works that fascinates me. So I ask her to let me into a typical day in her life. Her answer makes me smile, “Nobody tells you how wonderfully mundane their life really is.”
She wakes up early, spends time at her balcony reading and writing, and reads aloud every day to work on her articulation. “My dog probably thinks I am crazy,” she says. Mornings are for writing, then there is some time at the office, her workout usually gets pushed to the evening because, well, she keeps postponing it all day, and then it is time for family, friends and her dog. Some days she is bursting with energy; on others, she has to push herself. “That’s just part of life.”
Our conversation moves to luxury. But Khanna’s definition of it is far from the conventional markers. “Time is the greatest luxury. It's the only thing we can never have enough of within our lifetime,” she smiles.
Travel has become increasingly important for her, as a way of seeing and absorbing as much of the world as possible before time runs out. That, to her, is luxury.
And about luxury experiences, she considers truly indulgent, her answer isn’t a destination, a suite or access money can’t buy. “Anything I do with my family feels luxurious. I remember climbing Mount Etna while both the volcano and I seemed to be erupting at the same time. Experiences like that—being outdoors, sweating, sharing highs and lows with your family, feel incredibly luxurious today because so much of our lives have become digital.”
Khanna tries to learn something new every day, a practice she calls her daily ritual.
At the moment, she says she is deeply interested in ancient Greek philosophy. “I enrolled in an online course but realised I didn't have the foundation for it, so I'm teaching myself before attempting it again.” There is, clearly, no stopping her.
“I also play the guitar, very badly. My daughter is much better than I am, so she's teaching me,” she adds.
Another habit she has is taking notes throughout the day. Looking at me, she says my eyes remind her of a cat and jokes that she would probably go home and write “meow meow” in her notebook, simply to record what she noticed that day. Khanna also laughs about what she calls her secret talent: eavesdropping
But I am still curious to know what is on her vision board and what the next big “Twinkle moment” might be. Her answer is simple: “I don't have a vision board, I have a to-do list. If I complete what's on my to-do list every day, I'll eventually achieve my vision without needing to write it down separately. Every few days I make a fresh list and simply work through it. By the end of the year, I've usually achieved goals I didn't even realise I had.”
As our conversation time runs out, little pieces of her linger––reminders to take life less seriously, squeeze the most out of every moment, and always have ice cream waiting at home.
She Speaks
Through her writing and public voice, Twinkle Khanna has consistently challenged stereotypes and championed women’s rights. But what does empowerment mean to her today?
“Like everyone else, I read the news and observe what's happening around me. While we've made significant progress, I don't think a woman's everyday life has fundamentally changed.
Whether you're educated, working, or not, the responsibility of running a household still largely falls on women. You're making sure everything is taken care of—from clean clothes to clean windows to clean teeth.
Our aspirations have certainly changed, partly because of social media. Someone like me might dream of a wine-tasting holiday, while my helper may aspire to buy the latest Lancôme lipstick. But our daily responsibilities haven't changed. She works hard, and so do I.”
Khanna feels years and years of conditioning can't be undone overnight. “I do see change happening with the next generation, and I think the biggest shift will come from how we raise our children,” she says.
“For instance, why is it assumed that a woman leaves her home after marriage? Why isn't it equally common for a man to move in with his partner? We rarely question these norms, but perhaps we should,” Khanna adds.